Chain Subscription Keeps Customers Coming Back to Your Store

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An increasing number of cyclists, particularly enthusiasts who care about their bike’s performance, are preferring chain wax over oil lubricants.

When properly applied, chain wax lubricates chains without attracting any dirt, whereas oil lubricants are generally sticky and attract dirt & grit. It’s in fact the dirt and grit that destroys not only chains, but expensive cassettes, chainrings and pulley wheels.

Silca and their Australian agents Echelon Sports have come up with an innovative Silca Waxing Service through which bike shops can earn an ongoing subscription income by waxing chains via their workshops.

Silca recommends that you start by selling your customers two identical chains of their choice, both of which you wax using Silca Hot Melt Wax and the Silca Chain Waxing System. The pre-waxed chains are then sold with an additional charge over and above the regular costs of the chain. At this point you (the dealer) keep one of the chains stored with a labelled dog tag with your customers name in your workshop whilst fitting the other to the customer’s bike.

About every 600 to 800 kilometres (depending upon riding conditions) the customer returns to your store, where you swap out the used chain and replace it with the pre-waxed stored chain. You can strip and re-wax the returned chain at a later date when the workshop is less busy. This also allows you to batch this task with multiple other chains, for optimum labour efficiency.

In addition to the initial sale of two chains plus initial waxing, you would charge the customer a monthly subscription (Echelon suggests $50 to $55 per month). This price covers a new joining link for each chain exchange, workshop labour, the waxing product costs and a healthy profit margin for your store.

This subscription system will give you more profit than selling new chains on an ad hoc basis. Better still, you’ll now have some of your most active customers returning to your store on a more regular basis. Every time they walk in your door gives you another opportunity to make more profit by selling them other products!

In order to get initial momentum, you could add chain waxing to your workshop service menu. Once your customers have their first experience of a correctly waxed chain, they’re prime candidates for your subscription service.

You can see more about how to use the Silca Waxing System & related products via the following videos and the technical data provided by the independent source, Zero Friction Cycling.

For more information please contact Echelon Sports at info@echelonsports.com.au or call 07 3457 9999.